Silent festivals, rock n' roll Dolly Parton, a French genre film to die for, and a Gen-Z murder mystery.
ADVERTISEMENTFeeling bored and a bit gloomy?
If we couldn't tempt you with our coverage of the Month of European Film or a secret room allegedly displaying Michelangelo's drawings, here are some other solutions.
From early Picasso paintings to the sexy cinematography of 'Saltburn', the following are our picks for the best new art and cultural happenings around Europe to brighten your spirit and stimulate your mind.
Exhibitions
'Picasso 1906: The turning Point', Madrid, Spain
Explore Picasso's work from the year 1906 specifically, with a new Madrid-based exhibition focused on the artist's first contributions to the definition of “modern art”; a turning point in his creative evolution. It runs from 15 November - 4 March 2024 at the Reina Sofia Museum.
'Being Human – The sea at night is too big', Brussels, Belgium
A new exhibition by Spanish artist Gonzalo Orquín, titled 'Being Human – The sea at night is too big', features a series of paintings exploring the realities of migrants and refugees trying to reach Europe. Opening 22 November at Brussels’ MigratieMuseumMigration (MMM), it has received the support of both the UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration.
'Elliott Erwitt: A Retrospective', Lyon, France
Two little doggy paws poking out from beneath a mid-century coffee table. A 1950s waitress smoking a cigarette at an empty diner counter. French-American photographer Elliott Erwitt captures both the mundanity and absurdity of life, freezing the silent surrealism of humanity throughout the latter half of the 20th century. His works are now on display at La Sucrière, Lyon.
Festival
The Festival of Silence, London, UK
Shhhh! The Festival Of Silence takes place at St Columba's Church Of Scotland in Knightsbridge, London on 18 November. It involves a variety of activities - all done in complete quiet - and allows for visitors to escape the city hubbub for a while and find peace inside a beautiful old church.
Film
Vincent Must Die
What would you do if everyone suddenly wanted to kill you? This is the central premise behind 'Vincent Must Die', a new horror genre mash-up about a mild-mannered graphic designer in Lyon, who must figure out how to survive after inexplicably becoming target to others' violent outbursts (spoiler: dogs help).
Read our exclusive interview with the film's director, Stéphan Castang, here.
The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbird and Snakes
The hugely popular 'Hunger Games' franchise is back with 'The Hunger games: The Ballad of Songbird and Snakes'. This time, we're taken back in time to six decades before Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) volunteered as tribute, with Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler) our heroine for the 10th annual Hunger games, in which one boy and one girl ages 12-18 from each of the twelve districts is selected to violently compete with one another.
Saltburn
Director Emerald Fennell's ('Promising young Woman') highly-anticipated new film 'Saltburn' is finally out at cinemas, about a young Oxford student's (Barry Keoghan) invite to fellow student Felix Catton's (Jacob Elordi) family estate Saltburn for the summer, where a world of hedonism leads to obsession that starts to unravel his mind.
ADVERTISEMENTDavid Holmes: The Boy Who Lived Film
A new documentary on HBO Max tells the story of David Holmes, a stunt double to Daniel Radcliffe in the Harry Potter films who was paralysed while filming the series' penultimate 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1'.
TV
The Crown
Royalist or not, 'The Crown' has been undeniably captivating TV - and it's back on Netflix with the first part of its sixth and final season. Covering the late 90s, this series follows the lives of British royal family members in the wake of Princess Diana’s fatal car crash in Paris. The second part, consisting of another six episodes, is due to be released on 14 December.
A Murder at the End of the World
ADVERTISEMENTA classic murder mystery series with a Gen-Z spin, 'A Murder at the End of the World' follows hacker/detective Darby Hart (Emma Corrin), who, along with eight other guests, is invited on a remote retreat by a reclusive billionaire. After one of the guests is found dead, Darby must try to prove it was a murder before the killer strikes again. Streaming now on Disney+.
Scott Pilgrim Takes off
For lovers of Bryan Lee O'Malley's graphic novels and director Edgar Wright's 2010 movie adaptation, a new Scott pilgrim anime series on Netflix brings us back to the high-adrenaline gamified universe, this time reimagining the storyline with Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) attempting to figure out Pilgrim's (Michael Cera) disappearance.
Music
'New Blue Sun' - André 3000
Outkast's André 3000 has released his first album in almost two decades - 'New Blue Sun' - a solo venture featuring no words or rapping, just lots of going wild with the woodwind to create impressively improvised instrumentals.
ADVERTISEMENT'Rockstar' - Dolly Parton
Country queen Dolly Parton goes rock n' roll with her forty-ninth solo studio album, a collaborative project with musicians like Heart's Ann Wilson, Mötley Crüe's Nikki Sixx, Rob Halford of Judas Priest and The Beatles' Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr.
‘The Parting Glass’ - Boygenius
Boygenius, featuring Phoebe Bridgers, Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus, along with Irish folk duo Ye Vagabonds, have released a cover of Irish ballad 'The Parting Glass' in tribute to late Irish singer Sinead O’Connor, who recorded her own version of the song in 2002. Any proceeds from the song will go to the Aisling Project, which is "an after-school project working with children and young people growing up in a disadvantaged area in Dublin, Ireland,” Boygenius wrote on Instagram.
